44 Reasons Texas Doesn’t Need The United States

When folks try to tell you Texas couldn’t stand on its own two boots, just hand them this list. These aren’t wishful thinking or pie-in-the-sky projections – these are cold, hard facts about where the Lone Star State stands compared to sovereign nations across the globe.

Economic Muscle That Makes Nations Jealous

1. Global Economic Giant: With a verified $2.695 trillion GDP, Texas outmuscles Canada ($2.117T) and stands as a formidable economic rival to Russia ($2.1T), proudly ranking as the 8th largest economy on Earth.
2. Growth That Won’t Quit: Our 3.2% economic growth outpaces the national average (2.8%) and leaves G7 economies like Japan (1.0%) and Germany (-0.3%) in the dust.
3. Global Fortune 500 Dominance: 55 Fortune 500 headquarters call Texas home, far outpacing entire countries like Spain (which has only 8-10 Fortune Global 500 companies).
4. Fortune 1000 Leadership: Our 107 Fortune 1000 companies dwarf the corporate presence of European nations like Italy and Sweden (which have just 9-10 and 6 Fortune Global 500 companies respectively).
5. Monthly Tax Revenue: Our $3.7 billion in monthly sales tax revenue surpasses the entire government income of nations like Belize.
6. Zero Income Tax Power: We accomplish all this without taxing personal or corporate income – a fiscal policy that attracts businesses from around the world.

Energy Empire That Fuels The World

7. Oil Production Powerhouse: Pumping 5.51 million barrels daily, Texas ranks as one of the world’s top oil producers – if Texas were a country, we’d be the world’s 3rd largest oil producer, behind only the entire United States and Saudi Arabia.
8. Energy Production Hub: The Permian Basin is one of the world’s most productive oil fields, generating over 40% of all U.S. oil production and nearly 15% of total U.S. natural gas production – a single region in Texas that rivals entire oil-producing nations.
9. Active Well Infrastructure: With over 223,507 active oil wells in operation, Texas maintains a massive production infrastructure that dwarfs many OPEC nations combined.
10. Wind Power Leadership: Our 39,000+ MW wind capacity generates more electricity than Denmark’s entire national grid, which has a peak demand of just 4.6 GW.
11. Solar Energy Growth: Texas solar capacity has exploded 800% since 2019, reaching 22,000 MW – enough to power 4.4 million homes.
12. Energy Grid Independence: The only state with its own power grid, capable of operating independently from the rest of the nation.
13. Natural Gas Export Dominance: Texas exported an astounding 1,353 billion cubic feet of natural gas in 2023 alone, making it one of the world’s major energy exporters even when compared to entire nations.
14. Energy-Based Education Funding: Oil and gas taxes contributed $26.3 billion in 2023, funding 58% of Texas’ K-12 education budget through the Permanent School Fund.

Population & Workforce That Rivals Nations

15. Population Size: With 30.5 million Texans and counting, we’ve already surpassed Australia (27M) and Taiwan (23M).
16. Population Growth: Added 562,941 residents in 2024, a 1.8% growth rate tripling the U.S. average.
17. Workforce Size: Our 15.23 million workers outnumber the entire population of Belgium (11.7M).
18. Employment Growth: Texas added 348,300 jobs in 2023 while maintaining a 4.1% unemployment rate that puts France (7.4%) and Canada (5.8%) to shame.
19. Tech Workforce: Our tech sector employs 1.12 million, surpassing Israel’s entire high-tech workforce.

Trade Power That Dominates Globally

20. Export Volume: $440 billion in annual exports doubles California’s output and exceeds Brazil’s entire export economy.
21. Port Capacity: The Port of Houston handles 266 million tons of cargo annually – ranking among the top 20 busiest ports globally and exceeding all Russian Baltic ports combined.
22. Semiconductor Leadership: Our semiconductor exports reached $52 billion, surpassing Malaysia’s entire national chip exports ($48B).
23. Agricultural Exports: Texas produces 39% of U.S. cotton and 20% of national beef, with exports rivaling Argentina’s.

Land & Resources That Dwarf Nations

24. Territorial Size: At 268,597 square miles, Texas exceeds France (248,573 sq mi) and Ukraine (233,062 sq mi).
25. County Governance: Our 254 counties outnumber France’s 101 departments, each operating with local autonomy.
26. Ranch Scale: The King Ranch (1,289 sq mi) alone is larger than Luxembourg (998 sq mi).
27. Agricultural Land: Our 142 million acres of farmland exceed Ukraine’s entire arable land.
28. Cattle Industry: With 13.3 million head of cattle, we outproduce Ireland and New Zealand combined.
29. Water Resources: Texas manages 191,000 miles of rivers and streams – a network longer than the Yangtze, Amazon, and Nile rivers combined.

Infrastructure Built For Independence

30. Highway Network: Our 683,533 lane-miles of highways could circle Earth 27 times, exceeding Germany and France’s combined road networks.
31. Air Travel Infrastructure: 380 public airports beat Brazil’s commercial airport count.
32. Major Airport Hub: DFW International handles more passengers annually than all Egyptian airports combined.
33. Port Network: Texas has 29 ports along the Gulf Coast, providing diverse trading options with global partners.

Education & Innovation That Sets Global Standards

34. University Endowment: The Permanent University Fund ($43B) exceeds Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah University endowment ($36B).
35. K-12 Education Fund: The Permanent School Fund ($56B) is the largest educational endowment in the U.S., supporting public schools.
36. Higher Education Scale: UT and A&M systems educate 240,000 students – more than Iceland’s entire population.
37. Corporate Innovation: 11 North Texas companies alone made Fortune’s 2025 Most Innovative list.

Healthcare & Research Leadership

38. Medical Center Scale: The Texas Medical Center employs over 106,000 healthcare professionals – more than Singapore’s entire healthcare workforce.
39. Patient Care Volume: TMC handles over 10 million patient visits annually, contributing billions to global medical research.
40. Space Program Size: Texas is home to major private space companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin, employing over 4,000 people in space-related research and development, making the Lone Star efforts to reach the stars larger than Roscosmos (Russia), Canadian Space Agency (CSA), European Space Agency (ESA), and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).

Constitutional Distinctions No Other State Can Claim

41. Ocean Rights: Our 10.35-mile tideland jurisdiction grants control over 2.44 million acres of Gulf mineral rights, generating billions annually.
42. Defense Production: Texas defense contractors produce 45% of U.S. military helicopters, surpassing Italy’s total defense output.
43. Constitutional Uniqueness: Texas has a history as an independent republic prior to joining the United States, giving it historical precedent for self-governance unlike most other states.
44. Territorial Autonomy: Texas controls 1,254 miles of international border with Mexico, managing more cross-border trade than any other state and exercising significant regional influence.

The Texas Truth

These numbers tell a story that can’t be denied: Texas doesn’t just compete with American states – we compete with sovereign nations. Our economy, resources, infrastructure, and people match or exceed dozens of established countries around the world.

The Federal Government has been wildly inconsistent with its immigration policies and indecisive with its border policy. Meanwhile, Texas continues to strengthen on every metric that defines national success.

The question isn’t whether Texas could stand on its own – the question is whether we’re receiving fair value for what we contribute to the union. The numbers speak for themselves.

That, friends, is the Texas difference. And it’s why the spirit of independence burns as bright as ever in the hearts of those who call this land home.